


Flattery will get you everywhere

by Multifandom_damnation



Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: Blood and Injury, Caring Hugh Culber, Domestic Boyfriends, Emotional Baggage, Emotionally Repressed, Heart-to-Heart, M/M, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Paul Stamets Is Bad At Feelings, Self-Doubt, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:47:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,301
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28359570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Multifandom_damnation/pseuds/Multifandom_damnation
Summary: Engineering knew him as Stamets. Hugh knew him as Paul.
Relationships: Hugh Culber/Paul Stamets
Comments: 4
Kudos: 49





	Flattery will get you everywhere

Of course, Hugh had _heard_ about the incident in engineering. The over-eager, bright-eyed ensign who stuck his hand someplace he shouldn't have and was rushed to sick-bay with third-degree burns and four badly disfigured digits. Hugh only arrived in sick-bay as the harried medical team treated his burns and reconstructed his fingers. 

He was sure that the ship had erupted into panicked commotion by now, and that Saru was undoubtedly making his way to med-bay to personally assess the situation. The poor ensign was now asleep and Hugh could only hope that he was still sleeping soundly in the cellular regeneration chamber by the time Saru did inevitably arrive. 

Even after all this time, after all his experience both on Starships and back at the academy, this amount of blood still made him queasy. It coated the white frocks of the doctors and dripped from the sides of the table onto the sterile tiled floor, painting it red and sticky.

He spotted Tracy Pollard in the corner, scrubbing her hands clean at the sink. "Long day?" he asked as he crossed the floor to her. 

She glanced up just enough to glare good-naturedly through her eyebrows. "Long day? You mean long _shift_. I feel like I've aged ten years in two minutes," she switched off the tap and shook her hands dry. "I would have given anything to have swapped shifts with you so I didn't have to deal with that today."

"That's not true at all," Hugh said knowingly. "I was in the mess-hall when I heard it over the coms."

"What a shitty way to hear about it," she shook her head. "Stupid kid. What did Stamets have to say? How did he take it?"

"I haven't actually heard from him today, but I doubt he took it very well. You know how he is," Hugh rubbed his hands together. "Now, come on. What do need me to do?"

"Nothing," Tracy said. "I've got it handled and now that the kid is taken care of, it will be easy enough to close up shop."

"But this place is a mess!" Hugh insisted. "At least let me get a mop or something so I can help you clean up."

Turning away, Tracy dismissed his demands with a wave of her hand. "That's someone else's problem now. I've got about thirty minutes before my shift ends, so that's up to the night shift to deal with. I'm sure that after all this drama that the rest of the night is going to be quiet."

He huffed out a laugh. "You know better by now than to say the 'q' word," she smiled. "Are you sure?"

Tracy scoffed. " _Yes_ , I'm sure. Get out of here. Go make sure your man isn't taking out his frustration on some poor, unsuspecting soul."

"He's not _my_ man," Hugh rolled his eyes as he turned away from her.

"Uh-huh. Sure," Tracy said as he turned away, smiling. "Get the hell out of here already. Go."

The ensign was getting prepared for transport, sedated and his hand frozen in stasis until he got to the cellular regeneration chamber. A low-ranking nurse was already trying to mop up the blood and wipe down the bed. 

Out in the hallway, personnel were passing by quickly, occasionally slowing down to peer into the med-bay, obviously having heard the commotion. It was a big deal, a major injury. If it weren't for the total professionalism of the crew, he assumed that there would be a gaggle of onlookers outside the med-bay door.

But Tracy was right. While he had unparalleled faith in Paul and his abilities, he knew that an event such as this would have shaken him at the very least. But he knew Paul better than anyone and knew that the _last_ thing he would want was for Hugh to stroll down to engineering and check up on him. To his team, he was Mr Emotionless, Lord Cool-Calm-and-Collected, Sir Grumpy with the Stone Cold Facade. The engineers who worked with Paul only knew him to be the crotchety bastard, and he probably wouldn't appreciate Hugh dissuading that.

Engineering knew him as Stamets. Hugh knew him as Paul.

Everything within him was urging him to go down there and assess the damage, but he knew it would be better if he let it blow over, and someone else would tell Paul about the ensign's stable and improving condition. 

So Hugh pushed the thoughts of Paul from his mind and made his way through the crowded, bustling hallways towards their shared quarters. 

It was quiet without Paul there, and a little cold, and he just stood there for a moment. It was rare that one of them was in their room without the other. Often, they would finish their shifts at similar times and would have dinner together in the mess-hall before they retired to their room for the remainder of the night. 

Though their shifts were supposed to synch up today, Hugh had a feeling that Paul would be staying back late and knew better than to wait up for him. He knew that it would be better just to let this all blow over.

But in his solitary, Hugh was feeling a little stir-crazy. He wandered around, tidying things up and straightening their belongings. The edge of Paul's hastily folded pyjamas were hanging out of the drawer from where they were haphazardly put away, and he pushed them back. He wiped down their bathroom mirror and scrubbed down the sink.

He was aware of just how tired he really was after such a long day. Slowly yet eagerly, he began to unbutton his uniform and slide it off until one by one, items of clothing hit the ground to pool around his feet and he stepped into the awaiting steaming shower. 

The hot water helped unwind his sore, tired muscles and helped wipe away the filth of the day. He inhaled wet steam into his lungs and let the warm water pour over his face until he felt that he had wasted enough time, his skin red and flushed. 

He wrapped a towel around his waist as he entered their adjacent bedroom before he began getting dressed into his pyjamas. It was still a little early, but he was done for the day, so he didn't mind.

There was undoubtedly something he should be doing, but he climbed into bed regardless, soft and playable under his tired body, heavenly to his tired body and aching muscles. 

He reached over to drag the PADD onto his lap from its docking station on the bedside table. Michael had been singing the praises of that ancient book her mother had read to her and Spock as children, and it was safe to say that his interest was peaked. A quick search of Discovery's database helped him discover a collection of similar books. Tolkien seemed a little too involved for a quick read, but Lewis seemed just what he needed for a simple session of leisure. 

From the replicator, he ordered a glass of red wine. He asked the computer to light some candles. He turned on some Kasseelian opera. He settled in for a very pleasant evening.

He wasn't sure how long he laid there for, up against the cushions and wrapped in soft blankets, scrolling idly through the fantastical story on his PADD, the opera paying on a loop in the background. He had begun to feel drowsy, struggling to keep his eyes open, having finished many chapters of the novel and two glasses of wine over what felt like a couple of hours. 

When the door to their shared chambers was slid open slowly, Hugh startled awake, blinking, as the lights were switched on to 5% and the programmed candles were automatically deactivated. 

Paul stood there in the doorway, his uniform partially unzipped by the neck, his hair unusually dishevelled as if he had been raking his fingers through it. He looked pale and gaunt and stressed, and dark circles ringed his eyes. His lower lip was red and puffy like he had been gnawing at it.

Yawning, Hugh lowered the PADD to the bed and wiped a heavy hand down his face. "Hi," he greeted softly as he sat up higher on the pillows. 

At the sound of his voice, Paul froze and the door slid shut with a hiss. "Hi," he replied, slowly making his way further into the room. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't wake me," Hugh assured, sitting up straighter as Paul hastily undressed from his grimy uniform and discarded it on the floor beside Hugh's own.

As Paul got changed, his face visibly softened and a small smile crossed his features. A stark juxtaposition to his tired and stressed demeanour. "You were waiting up for me? You didn't have to do that. You had to have known that I was going to be working late."

"I didn't have to do anything. I wanted to wait for you. I wanted to see your handsome face before I fell asleep," Hugh grinned as Paul scoffed and climbed into bed. "Besides, I was reading."

"Reading?" Paul inquired as he adjusted the covers. "What are you reading? Reports?"

"No, a book, actually. Michael has been talking about these for as long as we've known her," he replied. "So I asked the computer to find me some, and I've just been perusing."

"Is it any good?" Paul asked as he got situated at Hugh's side.

"So far so good. I haven't gotten very far into it yet. It's about alternate magical dimensions and children and talking lions and wardrobes, and something called Turkish Delight. It's fun but meaty," he reached across to his bedside table and plucked a pre-prepared glass of wine between his fingers and handed it to Paul. "Here, for you."

When Paul took the glass, their fingers touched, just for a moment, and Hugh felt, not for the first time, how cold and calloused they were compared to Hugh's warmth and smooth skin. "Aw, you shouldn't have!"

Shrugging, Hugh relaxed back against the cushions. "Technically, the replicator did all the work."

Laughing, Paul brought the glass to his lips and smiled into his wine. "Well, thank you for thinking of me."

Feeling loved and safe and warm beside his love, Hugh felt brave enough to test the waters. "So, it was a pretty rough day today, huh?" he stated idly, trying to seem bored and disinterested. 

Judging by the suddenly sour, downtrodden look on Paul's face, Hugh missed 'blasé' by a long shot. "I don't want to talk about today. When I come home to you, I want to leave everything that happened at work behind me."

"I know, I know," Hugh tried to soothe. "But maybe we should talk about it. I know that you try and come off as emotionless and unphased, but I know better. And if _I_ was worried, _you_ definitely had to be worried. I've learned the hard way that after bad days it helps to debrief. And I'm always here. MIght as well tell me."

Brows furrowed and nose scrunched up in that adorable way Hugh loved, Paul looked at him suspiciously. "Don't tell me that you stayed up when you've been dead on your feet all day just to try and make me feel better and to chat about my emotions."

Shaking his head, Hugh reached out and rubbed his wrinkled brow with his thumb. "No, I meant what I said. I wanted to see you before bed. But maybe talking about it will help you sleep a little better. Maybe you'll wake up in a good mood for once.'

"I'm always in a good mood," Paul grumbled as he drowned the remainder of his wine and set the glass on his bedside table before settling back down. "Stupid kid. He just... _ugh_. Reno needed a second pair of hands for her work on the Warp Core upgrades, and he put his hand right into the middle of the back-up power cell and his whole hand just _shredded_. Reno was hysterical and furious, so it was up to me to run the place."

"You run that place pretty well regardless. It really is _your_ engineering," Hugh said as Paul shifted to rest against his chest. Hugh wrapped his arm around his shoulders. "But I'm sure that must have been pretty tough on you."

"You know how it is," Paul said solemnly. "Some days are harder than others, but we get through."

Humming, Hugh carded his fingers through Paul's hair. "But he's alright, you know. The kid. The medical team stabilized him, and Tracy was able to reconstruct his hand. A little bed rest, and he'll be fine."

Paul relaxed further into his embrace. "I know he's going to be fine, but that doesn't help the knowledge that such a horrendous thing happened on my watch," he sighed and tilted his head up to look Hugh in the eyes. There was something vulnerable there that even Hugh rarely got to see. "But sometimes I worry that I push them too hard. That they try and meet my expectations, and that things like _this_ happen. Incidents occur. People get hurt. This time, someone losses a hand. Next time..."

He trailed off, eyes dropping to stare at Hugh's clavicle. Hugh tried not to sigh. He of all people knew that Paul could get like this sometimes. "I think that you're being too hard on _yourself_. Those kids idolize you. They want to impress you."

Even though he could hardly see him with the lights dim and his head tucked low, Hugh could feel Paul shaking his head. "They shouldn't. I'm just like them. I'm nothing special worth admiring."

Biting his lip, Hugh shifted his hand so he could tenderly caress the side of Paul's face with his thumb. "You know that I'm not going to comment on that. I doubt you want me to contradict you and point out all the reasons you _should_ be admired."

That surprised a laugh out of him. It was sad and quiet, but a genuine laugh that Hugh felt proud about. "No, you're right. You know me well. But enough about me. How was your day?"

"Mostly boring, honestly," Hugh admitted. "Sickbay had very few visitors, and I was doing my rounds when the incident happened, so I wasn't even there for it."

"Lucky you," Paul said. "It was- to quote Adira- gnarly."

"I saw all the blood in the med-bay. The aftermath was bad enough," Glancing down, he ran his fingers across Paul's jaw. "But like I said. After a little rest, he's going to be right as rain. Ten cycles in the cellular regeneration chamber will fix him up, and I'll wager that he'll be back to light duties by the end of the week."

"I know," Paul sighed so heavily that Hugh felt it resonate through his very soul. "I know."

Ducking down, Hugh placed a gentle kiss to his crown. "You're tired," he said. It wasn't a question.

Slowly, Paul tilted his head back. "I am," he frowned. Hugh longed to kiss away the wrinkles on his brow, so he did. Hurridly, Paul added. "But, I mean, no more so than anyone else. No more than _you_."

Unconvinced, Hugh looked into Paul's eyes until he looked away. "You work too hard. You should rest."

"I'm fine," Paul insisted, blushing and playfully squirming away when Hugh continued to pepper his face with kisses. "I'll rest when there's no more work that needs to be done."

"Yeah, I understand that, but you're an _engineer_. I'm a doctor." Hugh laughed. "Let us leave the brave, foolish members of our crew to worry about that, huh?"

Instead of answering, Paul splayed his hand across Hugh's stomach. "I don't know. I keep thinking that _I_ should have been the one to lose their hand, not that poor ensign. I had nothing going on. _I_ should have been the one helping Reno, not a kid who barely has any idea what he's doing."

Sighing, Hugh tightened his arm around Paul's shoulder and rested his hand on his. "You're not going to let this go, are you? Are you going to make me list all the wonderful things I love about you?" he teased. "Because I'm _more_ than happy to oblige. You're brilliant and scarily clever. You're grumpy and pessimistic yet compassionate and kind. You're a great dancer but have terrible taste in music. Your hands are full of callouses but are very nice to hold, and your lips are nice to kiss, even though you're always frowning. You have a nice voice though you only sing in the shower. You never tell jokes though you're very funny. It helps that your face isn't _too_ hard on the eyes and that you're great in be-"

He was cut off by Paul shifting higher so he could look Hugh in the eyes without straining himself, and tenderly stroked a hand down the side of Hugh's face. "Flattery," he said with a growing smile and a twinkle in his eye. "Will get you _everywhere_."

Suddenly, he surged forward and pressed his lips against Hugh's, pressing their foreheads together, cupping his hands on either side of Hugh's face as he graced his thumbs across Hugh's cheeks.

The worries of the day all faded from Hugh's mind as he lost himself in the intensity of the kiss. He forgot all about the ensigns missing hand and the blood all over the med-bay and the guilt Paul had stored up in his chest. All he cared about right here, right now, was Paul's body above his, his warm breath ghosting across Hugh's face, his lips pressed against his, their noses touching, his hands on Hugh's cheeks.

The passage of time became strange- could have been hours, could have been minutes, but it wasn't long enough regardless- when Paul finally pulled away, laughing breathlessly. "Sorry," he said, not sounding sorry at all. "I couldn't help myself."

"Don't be sorry," Hugh gulped. "I wasn't going to stop you. Are you feeling a bit better now?"

"Yeah," Paul laughed, settling back down beside Hugh and resting his head against his chest. "Sorry I've been in such a foul mood. It's been a... a long and tiring day."

"Hey, I get it. There's never any reason for you to apologise to me, especially not for just being yourself," Hugh said. "I know you can get a little moody sometimes. Things happen."

"Well, I hope it happens less often," Paul sighed. "We've got a huge day tomorrow to try and make up for the lost time today. It's going to be... a long one."

"In that case," Hugh squeezed Paul's hand one last time, raising it to his lips and placing a kiss to the back of it before letting it go. "I'd better let you get to sleep, hey?"

Shifting, Paul faltered, "That's not necessary, I'm more than happy to keep talking to you for a bit longer."

Huffing out a laugh, Hugh looked down into Paul's eyes, glimmering in the dull light. "I mean, we can, but you were right. I am pretty beat after today. I think I'm in for an early night."

Paul looked up at him with a love and adoration that Hugh could hardly comprehend. "I love you."

Hugh placed one last kiss to Paul's brow, grinning all the while. "I love you too."

With Paul's comforting warmth against his side a familiar presence, their hands intertwined together beneath the blankets, Paul snoring softly with his face buried into the crook of Hugh's shoulder, Hugh fell asleep safe and loved, and with the worries of the day long forgotten.


End file.
